The diesel price will go up by Rs. 5 a litre and a household will get only six domestic LPG (14.2 Kg) cylinders per annum. These decisions were taken by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) at a meeting on Thursday.

The decision to go in for the sharp diesel price hike, which excludes value added tax, will take effect from midnight on Friday.The CCPA, headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, also decided to reduce the excise duty on petrol by Rs. 5.50 a litre from Rs. 14.78, adjusting the recent spurt in international crude prices, which have touched $114 a barrel. The restriction in supply of LPG cylinders is likely to help in reducing the under-recovery of OMCs by about Rs. 5,300 crore for the remaining part of the financial year. The under-recovery during 2012-13, even after this measure, is estimated to be above Rs. 32,000 crore. Any number of cylinders will be available over and above the cap of 6 cylinders at market rate. The number of cylinders available to each consumer in the remaining part of this financial year will be 3 cylinders, an official statement said.